High involvement work systems and job insecurity in the international ironand steel industry

The different factors behind globalization and the emergence of high involv ement work practices do not necessarily carry similar implications for labo ur: The purpose of this paper is to examine the effects of high involvement work systems upon workers in the steel industry. The authors present resul ts from a series of cross-national surveys conducted in 1998 with 39 nation al trade unions from over 30 countries measuring issues such as job securit y, ownership changes, numerical flexibility, and union density. The finding s are consistent with U.S. data reported by Osterman (1998) indicating that new work practices provide no defense against an environment of heightened insecurity.